LEADERS of the National Summit Group have restated their resolve to mobilise the country towards peoples’ constitutional convention, so as to resolve the instability orchestrated by the insurrection of the Boko Haram sect and militancy.

Speaking with President Goodluck Jonathan at the weekend, at a presidential retreat organised in Abuja for leaders of civil societies, NSG spokesperson, Olawale Okunniyi, said except the ongoing process of reviewing the 1999 Constitution is utilised, the country may soon be thrown into a major civil strife.

The renowned political scientist, who shared similar view with Mr Femi Falana, Mr Olisa Agbakoba, Mr Tony Uranta, Dr Otive Igbuzor, among other civil society stalwarts at the retreat, said the procedure for reforming a constitution is more important than the content of the provisions of a constitution.

“Every constitution must derive its legitimacy from the quality and popularity of the processes giving birth to it, as no amount of alterations to the 1999 military imposed constitution can turn it from a military decree into a constitution, not to talk of becoming a peoples’ constitution,” Okunniyi said.

He, however, called on the President Jonathan and the National Assembly to set up independent national consensus commission to drive the process of giving Nigeria a new constitution, so that Nigerians could own, respect and defend their laws.

He stressed that the National Assembly, by its current amendment process, “will certainly not be able to give Nigerians the desired peoples’ constitution, as it has no electoral mandate or legal ground to do so, except it first seeks the mandate of the Nigerian people, through a constituent assembly.”

Comments (1)

Show/hide comments

...
written by OLU.ADE, September 10, 2012

I TOTALLY DISAGREE WITH THE NSG,THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY IS THE LEGAL REPRESENTATIVES OF THE COUNTRY BY ITS NATURE BECAUSE NASS CAME INTO BEING THROUGH THE FEDERAL NATIONAL ELECTION,IF THERE SHOULD BE ANY CONSULTATION ,EACH MEMBER OF NASS SHOULD GO BACK TO THEIR CONSTITUENCIES FOR DELIBERATIONS OTHERWISE ANY CALL FOR ANY OTHER FORM OF NATIONALLY ASSEMBLY WILL BE LIKE OPENING AND OLD WOUNDS AND THAT MIIIIGHT BRING US BACKWARD TO 1914,GOD FORBIDS !!

• 
• +0
• 
• 

Show/hide comment form

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (registered users only)

I have read and agree to the Terms of Usage.

Add Comment